Dogs' homes are struggling

IT'S not just people who are feeling the effects of the state economic crisis - our animal welfare centres are too.

Dogs' Homes of Tasmania are struggling to meet basic operational costs and are urging the community to help ensure their survival.

"Expenses are increasing at the same time as the income stream is decreasing. The stark reality is we have to restructure and reduce expenditure to survive," Dogs Homes president John Gray said.

He said power bills alone had quadrupled over the past two years and staff wages, reduced interest on investments, increased numbers of dogs and the organisation's welfare commitment to not euthanising healthy dogs were also contributing to financial difficulties.

Chief executive officer Rob Broadway said income from local councils and adoption fees had never been enough to cover operational costs.

"We now face our biggest financial challenge ever ...we are being forced to cut costs, but at the same time, we don't want to reduce the services that mean positive outcomes for dogs," he said.

"We can reassure members and supporters that dogs' homes continue to work hard at increasing the number of dogs adopted and reducing the number of dogs euthanised," he said.

"Like the dogs in our care, the organisation itself now needs white knights to come to the rescue and enable our proud history of caring for Tasmania's lost and abandoned dogs to carry on," Mr Gray said.